


A Star Encounter

by Watergirl1968



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), First Apartment, Fluff, M/M, canonverse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-30
Updated: 2017-02-05
Packaged: 2018-09-20 19:53:39
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,037
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9510440
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Watergirl1968/pseuds/Watergirl1968
Summary: Young professionals Daichi and Suga prepare to share a quiet, intimate Christmas Day together, in their small Tokyo apartment. Friends and strangers have other ideas, however....





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [darlingstardust](https://archiveofourown.org/users/darlingstardust/gifts).



> This little fic is for my sweet friend Brittie, who sent me a fic prompt for daisuga - "Christmas together in their first apartment".  
> So yeah, have my first HQ fic!! Daisuga was my first HQ ship. But not my last. There are more. Yes, quite a few more...

"Seven paces across!" Sawamura Daichi turned his tablet around, showing Hinata the interior of the new apartment he shared with Sugawara Koushi. "Seven! And that's my paces, not Suga's paces. It's huge!"

"Whoa!" Hinata's voice squawked through the tablet's speaker. "Show me the kitchen!"

Daichi walked into the tiny kitchen, carrying the tablet. ""Well, only one of us can really fit in here," he chuckled.

"Hey, at least it's got running water!" Hinata enthused. "What about the bathroom?"

"You don't want to see the bathroom."

"Of course I do! Bathrooms are my favourite!"

Daichi walked down the narrow hallway, toed off his slippers and put on the bathroom slippers he'd left outside of the door.

"It's orange!" Hinata commented.

Daichi sighed. "Yes. It's orange. Or pale red. I don't know. But it has a large tub. The person that rented it before us had a disability. She needed a large tub, so now we get this large tub. You can fit two people in this tub. It's like a little _onsen_ inside of the apartment."

"I've never heard of an orange _onsen_."

"No, nor have I."

"Why would you want to fit two people into a tub?"

Daichi closed his eyes, shaking his head. "Never mind, Hinata."

"I'm coming over to see it for myself!" Hinata declared. "I know tomorrow is Christmas Day. Can I come by for a short hello?"

Daichi chuckled. "I thought all of your hellos were the short kind."

__________

Sugawara Koushi rubbed his tired eyes and straightened his tie. He stood in the packed conference room at the _City Planning Institute of Japan_ , along with his colleagues, his superiors and his team members.

After a final, marathon work session, he and his team had turned in their proposed solution for a new railway hub that was to bisect an existing green space.

Suga had been working on the project for six months. At twenty-four, he was the youngest of the six team leaders assigned to create and submit a proposal to the CPIJ's Board of Directors.

It was Christmas Eve. Outside, the sky over Tokyo was a warm grey, like soft chalk. The lights of the business district glimmered in the twilight.

The Chairman of the Board addressed his workforce, thanking them for their prodigious efforts, and outlining the merits of each of the proposals. It was a challenge, he reminded them, to design a train station with an effective flow, which still respected the green space and organic landscape of the parkland.

All of the proposals were thoughtfully considered, he complimented them, however the one the company had chosen to develop was the concept submitted by "Sugawara-san's team."

Suga shook his head, thinking that he had misheard. His team members were clapping him on the back. He rose, faced the Chairman and bowed deeply. He then bowed to each of his fellow team leaders.

Half an hour later, he escaped to the chilly rooftop of the building, huddled into his wool coat and scarf and called home.

"Daichi," he said into the phone, in a small, tight voice.

"You did it?" came the warm baritone reply through the phone.

"Yes," Suga burst out. "Yes, we did it!"

"We must celebrate," Daichi concluded. "Do you want to go home tomorrow for Christmas? See our families?"

Suga huddled against the brick wall, trying to hide from the cold. "We'll go in two days," he replied, "Tomorrow...let's spend the day...at home. As we'd planned to do."

Despite the cold, his cheeks burned. It was the first Christmas that he would share with Daichi, in their new apartment. They had conspired to spend the day in bed, in the bath, and cuddled up together sharing a meal.

The freedom to do that, and to do a great many things, still made Suga feel a little dizzy, like walking a high wire without a net.

Gone was the structure and safety of Karasuno High School. Also in the past were the intense, penniless days of University. He was a young professional now; his slate was clean, he was a newborn, of sorts.

And, despite his cooperative and kind-hearted nature, Sugawara Koushi had promised himself that he would build a successful career in Urban Planning. His days of functioning as an _alternate_ were behind him. Today was the start of a new path.

"As you wish," Daichi said into the phone.

"Good," Suga's breath puffed into the cold air. "How was the last day of school?"

Daichi laughed, "Full of crazy students excited for the break," he replied. "I ran them into the ground."

"Did they misbehave for the new gym teacher?" Suga asked.

"Nope," Daichi shook his head, "they are sufficiently afraid of _Sawamura-san_ to behave themselves!"

"Could be worse," Suga smiled. "You could have a class full of Hinata Shoyos to deal with."

Daichi thought about Hinata's impending visit. "About that....."

__________

Suga walked through the market on his way to the train station. He wore a wool coat and hat and carried his briefcase. He passed a group of high-school boys, standing on a street corner, shoving pork buns into their mouths, rough-housing and laughing.

Two of the boys staggered into his path, looking up and apologizing to the businessman they had nearly upended. "Be careful," he admonished them, grinning.

_Sugawara-san, the young intern at the office had asked him, How will you spend your holiday?_

_Suga had flushed noticeably, causing his intern to back up two steps, and bow repeatedly, apologizing profusely. Please forgive my rudeness, I'm so sorry, it's not my place._

_Suga had reassured the flustered intern, making up a half-truth about a family dinner, and leaving out the part where Daichi would..._

A warm contentment began in Suga's belly and spread. He passed a shop, it's cheerful window ablaze with paper lanterns, decorations and ornaments. Among these was a series of ornamental tin stars, punctured with tiny holes and glowing from within.

Suga liked stars.

He entered the shop, emerging some time later with a large silver star ornament. He and Daichi would hang it in their window. Some of the apartments in his complex had similar stars in the windows. Suga thought they looked festive.

__________

Daichi was tapping a shopping list into his phone, when it buzzed in his hands. He tapped the speaker.

"Noya," he greeted his friend.

"You home?" Nishinoya Yu greeted him.

"Yes. Term is finally over!"

"Suga home?"

"Not yet."

Noya made a displeased noise.

"Noya," Daichi chastised, "stop fussing over us."

"This part of town," Noya reminded Daichi, "it's not like home. Rents are cheap for a reason. You need to watch your back. I know. My family has lived here for years. It can be rough. That's why my parents moved to Miyagi Prefecture when I was little. You watch yourselves."

"I know," Daichi said patiently. "I'm a big guy, Noya. Nobody bothers me. Do you want to come by tomorrow? Hinata-kun is coming over for a little while."

"Maybe. If only to satisfy myself that you have good locks on the doors and windows."

"They're fine."

"You're small town boys."

"Everything is fine," Daichi repeated, biting his lip and wondering how to explain to Suga that their special day would now include at least two visitors.

__________

Daichi went to the shops, wearing his scuffed leather jacket and a hard, wary face. Noya hadn't been exaggerating; he and Suga's rented apartment was in a rough area of the city. It was one of five low-rise rental units; relics from the eighties, with cement courtyards and chain-link fences.

No one bothered Daichi. He stood six-foot-one, was solidly-built and wasn't flashy. He wore no jewellery, nor expensive clothes. He carried a gym bag to work; he was a gym teacher, ironically, at Nekoma Metropolitan. He'd accepted the position after Suga's job offer with the CPIJ had come through. Suga's position was Tokyo-based, so a Tokyo apartment it was.

He returned home to find Suga in the living room, unpacking a large, tin star.

Daichi stood in the doorway, watching Suga. Suga had the sleeves of his dress shirt rolled up, and his tie loosened.

"Hi!" Suga smiled.

"Hello," Daichi placed his grocery bags onto the kitchen counter, and walked back into the main room.

He leaned down, touching his forehead to Suga's gently. "I'm so proud of you," he said. "I went to the European market. I'm going to make you _cannelloni_ for Christmas."

Suga opened his eyes, pulling his head back to look quizzically at his boyfriend.

"What?"

" _Cannelloni?_ " Daichi repeated. "I'm probably mispronouncing it."

"Can..."

"It's Italian food. Tube-noodles stuffed with sausage."

"That sounds wonderfully perverted!" Suga snickered. "I'm googling it."

"Cannelloni," he confirmed. Then: "Look, Daichi, he's at it again..."

Suga thumbed through his youtube account. Daichi sat beside him at the low table, stretching his legs out gratefully to warm them under the heated table.

"Watch," Suga turned his laptop.

_Crow Prince, the daredevil was called. Urban parcour was his obsession. Wearing a crow mask, the lithe young man scaled walls, performed leaps over playground equipment and onto railings, shinnied up bridgeworks like a monkey, and did gravity-defying somersaults off of walls. His latest feat was scampering over the top of a commuter train as it came to a stop in the train station, then leaping away to evade the authorities._

_Crow Prince_ had become a cult figure among urban Tokyo youth; a number of his videos had gone viral. Spray-painted graffiti crows had begun to appear in impossible places in the Tokyo cityscape.

"He's coming over tomorrow," Daichi remarked, grateful for the opportunity to broach the subject.

Suga frowned, nodding. "Good. We need to talk to Hinata before he really hurts himself, or worse."

__________

Freezing rain had begun to fall. The streets were slick; Nishinoya Yu took extra care on his light motorbike as he wove through traffic, circling the blocks around the apartment complex. He pulled into a low, muddy courtyard, shutting off the lights. He removed his helmet, blinking against the dazzle of rain in the streetlights. Waited. There, two of his uncle's men, in the doorway of the apartment's back entrance.

Noya slid off of his bike, walking along the side of the building and leaning against it.

"All quiet?" he asked the figure in the doorway. The man nodded, grunting.

His eyes flicked across the courtyard. "By the way - did my friend arrive home, the businessman, with the silver hair?"

"Yes, Nishinoya-san. Half-hour ago."

Noya nodded. He strode across the courtyard, pulled on his helmet and peeled out into the street.

_________

Daichi watched, feeling full, lazy and unashamed, as Suga did all the work of hanging the tin star in their apartment window.

As he lounged at the low table, sipping on a liqueur-infused tea, the view of Suga standing on the step ladder was more than satisfactory.

"Looks nice?" Suga asked him, turning the ornament slightly.

"So nice," Daichi agreed amiably.

Suga climbed down, folding the step ladder and putting it away.

"Tea is ready, Koushi," Daichi said quietly.

Suga knelt, accepting the hot cup of tea and taking a sip. He sighed happily. "You know...I'm grateful that I do something meaningful for a living. Something I care about. You know," he looked at Daichi, "After Karasuno, I wondered if I would ever find anything that I cared about, as passionately."

"I know," Daichi nodded. He nudged closer. "But you did. And I did."

_There had been one day, one match, when the blossoming heat between them had bubbled to the surface, breaking the skin. A habitual hand-slap between Daichi and Suga on the court had become something else; Daichi had grabbed Suga's hand instead, thumb brushing the inside of Suga's wrist, tenderly._

_It had been a tiny gesture, but it had changed everything; Sugawara Koushi's entire world had tilted by two degrees. Fortunately, as was par for the course, Suga had come off the court one rotation later, and Kagayama had gone back in. Suga had stood on the sidelines trading observations with Yamamoto, arms crossed casually in front, the heat in his chest threatening to spill over in messy bliss onto the court._

_That evening, he'd walked with Daichi and the other players to the store, stopping for a snack and a bit of banter on the corner. There, he and Daichi had parted company with the others and headed east. When they'd reached the bridge that Suga was to cross on the way home, Daichi had placed a hand on his shoulder and stepped close, pressing his cheek gently against Suga's for a long moment._

_"Goodnight," he'd said simply, "See you."_

_"See you."_

Even now, it took the young men some time each day to unwind at home, to feel their way toward one another, exploring adulthood, and their newfound freedom and privacy.

Daichi leaned forward, brushing his lips against Suga's, tasting green tea and honey liqueur.

"It's nearly Christmas," his deep voice was soft.

"Uh-huh," Suga's lips parted a little. "Tomorrow," he chuckled, and was cut off by another kiss, "Tomorrow, we'll figure out how to stuff sausage tube noodles."


	2. Chapter 2

"Skype!"

"Mom..." Suga replied sleepily, "I just woke up..."

"Skype, Koushi!"

"My hair is messy," he complained quietly.

"I gave birth to you. You were bald. I'm just happy that you have hair."

Suga relented. He leaned over, fishing for his laptop. He opened the link.

His mother and father peered curiously into the screen, as though into a fish tank. His mouth quirked into a smile.

"Sit down, dad." he said. "Nice to see you."

"We..." his dad was nodding, composing himself, "We are so proud of you. So proud. We've told everyone!"

"Thank you, dad..." Suga replied hesitantly, "In my line of work, one can never tell which way the wind will blow...they may use my concept, they may modify it. It could get cancelled and never built if the funding doesn't come through. We're told not to get too attached to our projects."

"You look tired," Suga's mother frowned.

"Where is Keiko?" Suga asked.

"Still sleeping, of course. She's seventeen."

Suga rolled over, rubbed his eyes and yawned. "Ok...mom, I really need to go for now...I'm barely awake. We'll see everyone tomorrow...Looking forward to coming home."

He signed off, closing the laptop.

In the apartment window, his star twirled lazily. Suga lay on his back, trying to wake up. Daichi was in the small kitchen, banging around and humming softly.

"Good morning," called Suga.

"Hey," Daichi poked his head out of the kitchen. He emerged a moment later with coffee.

"Mmm," Suga purred. "I'm so glad you made coffee," he said ruefully. "The older I get, the harder it is to wake up."

Daichi knelt on the futon, and then keeled over beside Suga. "I know," he replied. He snuggled up to Suga from behind, one heavy arm pulling him close.

"We could stay here all day," Daichi proposed.

"We could have," Suga said gently, "except that Hinata is due to visit."

Daichi rolled Suga onto his back. He bent his dark head, taking Suga's small, mauve nipple into his mouth gently.

"Daichi, move."

He felt the gentle pressure of teeth. "Daichi, quit it. We have to put the bed away and tidy up."

__________

Suga padded into the orange bathroom, splashing himself awake. He pulled on gym pants and his worn, butter-soft Karasuno t-shirt. For the hundredth time, he turned over in his mind the possibility of moving back home to Miyagi Prefecture. His fingers grazed the faded, cracking characters. 'Fly'.

"We did," he said quietly. "Dai?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm going for a short run, okay? Do you need anything else for the sausage tubes?"

"What are we bringing back home tomorrow?"

"Sweets. Sake. We have everything."

"We should have an Italian dessert tonight. Cannoli"

"We're having that for dinner, aren't we?" Suga was confused.

"No, that's cannelloni."

"Their words all sound the same," Suga shook his head.

He left the apartment, jogging through the courtyard and out of the gate.

When he returned some forty minutes later, slowing to cool down, he stopped short.

A lithe figure was scrambling up the side of his building, swinging fluidly from one balcony to the next, rolling over the railing.

"Hinata-kun!" Suga barked, hands on his hips.

"Ah!" the figure waved to him, "fourth floor, right?"

Speechless, Suga watched as Hinata Shoyo levered himself up, disappearing onto their apartment balcony. "Hinata!"

Suga bounded up the stairs, opening the apartment door just as Daichi was letting Hinata in through the balcony door.

"Suga-san!" Hinata bounded over, throwing his arms around his former team-mate. "I'm so happy to see you! Merry Christmas!"

"I'm glad you're here!" Suga clapped Hinata on the back.

Hinata looked around, grinning. "It _is_ a good size! Daichi-san, you were right! May I...may I use the bathroom?"

"Of course," Daichi gestured down the hall.

Hinata disappeared down the hallway.

"Wow, It's so _orange_!"

"Yes. We had this conversation yesterday."

Hinata hummed happily.

Suga picked up one of the two sneakers Hinata had lobbed off at the balcony door. "He's not leaving the same way he came in," he declared.

__________

Daichi set out tea and sweets.

"So," he asked Hinata, "what is your new place like?"

"I'm living with some guys," Hinata said lightly, "sharing a place."

"Soon," he said enthusiastically, "I'll have enough money to rent a nice apartment, like this one."

"I thought," Suga said, "that you were moving in with Kenma-kun?"

Hinata shook his head. "Kenma needs a quiet place."

He brightened. "Hey! Did you see my train-hopping video?"

"We did."

" _Crow Prince!_ " Hinata jabbed his chest happily. "my videos are making real money, now! I might even be in a television commercial!"

"Really," Daichi nodded. He paused, looking at Suga. Suga was chewing his lip, thinking.

"Hinata-kun...there is no denying your acrobatic talents," Daichi acquiesced. "But...well..."

Hinata chomped happily on an almond pastry and slurped his tea. "This is so _nice_ ," he said, "having a little Christmas visit."

"It is," Suga agreed, "but Hinata-kun, please listen. "I...that is to say, we...we are hoping that you're considering some other ways to make a living as well. All it would take is one slip...one miscalculation, and we'd be visiting you in the hospital, friend."

Hinata picked up another pastry. "These are lovely," he said.

"Hinata-kun," Daichi said sternly, "the students in my gym class try and imitate you. They all want to be the _Crow Prince._ However the results are often disastrous. Sprains and concussions and things."

Hinata nodded. "I can imagine. Not everyone can perform _parkour_ at my level."

Suga poured more tea. "So," he ventured, "did you see Kageyama-kun on his birthday?"

Hinata swallowed, toeing the tatami mat. After a pause, he replied, "I saw him. He didn't see me, though."

"Oh?"

"I watched him. Through a window at the precinct. He spent his birthday all alone, sitting at his desk, doing paperwork."

"You didn't phone him?"

"He won't take my calls. Idiot! Constable Kageyama is more concerned with saving Tokyo than in talking to me."

"Sorry," said Daichi, dropping a large hand onto Hinata's shoulder.

"Don't feel sorry for me," Hinata stuck out his pointed chin, "I'm not the idiot. Stupid, stubborn Kageyama."

"You miss him?" Suga asked.

Hinata's happy expression tightened. He dropped his eyes. "Of course I miss him."

"Maybe we can meet up. For a meal, all together."

"Maybe!" Hinata brightened. He stood. "I need to say my goodbyes now, anyway. I'm catching the train home to Torono shortly!"

__________

Sawamura Daichi stood in his tiny kitchen, opening the box of cannelloni noodles. He removed a tube, fitting it suspiciously to a finger.

Suga crept up behind him, laying his face into the warm hollow between Daichi's shoulder blades.

"Do we have to boil those things?"

Daichi reread the recipe. "No. No boiling. We have to stuff them hard, but we must put plenty of sauce in the baking dish so they get soft."

"Will that baking dish fit into the microwave?"

Daichi eyed the small kitchen's microwave. "Shoot. We may have to cook it in two smaller dishes."

Suga's fingers played with the drawstring of Daichi's sweatpants. "Do you know how to use the microwave's oven function?"

"Yes," Daichi turned his head to look at Suga over his shoulder. "Do you?"

"Yes."

Daichi snickered. "I don't think either of us is being entirely truthful, here."

Suga tugged gently on the string.

" _Koushi_ , this is important," Daichi looked pained.

Suga pushed his hips gently against the firm warmth of Daichi's backside. "I can't get used to you wearing Nekoma trackpants, Dai."

"So..."

"So..." Suga pulled on the string, "I think you need to show a little school spirit..."

Daichi closed his eyes, his head falling backward to rest on Suga's shoulder.

"Good," Suga turned his face, nibbling at the muscular neck presented to him. "Now, I am going to show you everything I know about sausages..." his hand dipped, stroking Daichi's belly, palming his erection through the undergarment he wore.

Suga felt the deep groan through Daichi's chest. "Come back to bed," he whispered.

__________

If there was a word for the deep, cathartic peace that Daichi felt when he lay with Suga in their bed, he hadn't discovered it yet. The sense of well-being warmed his chest, softened his bones.

He told _Koushi_ everything. He couldn't remember a time when he didn't. When he walked into a classroom or into the gym, he looked for Suga. He had studied with Suga throughout University; the two of them huddled over a dodgy space heater, squinting until their eyes burned.

Sometimes, he tried to picture himself, walking home with Suga and hypothetically explaining to Suga that he had a girlfriend...or a boyfriend. Or that he was travelling to Thailand with someone else. Or that he was engaged to be married to someone else. It was not a conversation he could imagine. No conversation which would dislodge _Koushi_ from the place he held in Daichi's heart, was feasible.

All that had remained was to ask his closest companion, in some fashion, if the feelings were reciprocal. In the end, there had never been any doubt.

He lay in bed, listening to the sound of the shower. The tiny shower cubicle was not large enough to hold both of them, so he waited his turn.

"Kou-kun," he called, "finished?"

"Finished! Shall I start the bath?"

"No," Daichi sat up. I will do it. Come out for a few minutes."

Suga emerged from the bathroom, switching slippers without looking. He wore a dark blue robe which Daichi had not seen before; his throat and limbs ivory-pale against it.

"That's nice," Daichi said softly, admiring in equal part the robe and the purple blossom he'd left on Suga's collarbone.

"So now?"

"So, I want to draw the bath for you. Wait."

Suga drifted into the kitchen. "I'll read about the oven. Otherwise we've got to make the _canna_ \- things on microwave setting and then maybe brown the top in the toaster oven."

Daichi showered, scrubbing himself assiduously. Then, he filled the tub with hot water, turning on the tub's heater. He warmed some essential oil in a tiny lamp, and a few candles. He dragged his ipod dock to the doorway of the bathroom and plugged in his device.

Then, he heard voices.

__________

Sugawara Koushi was only beginning to understand all of the working parts of his relationship with Daichi.

At the core was an unspoken bond that had been present since they were fifteen years old. This bond had evolved through their incredible years with Karasuno; it had sustained them through the gruelling university years. It had made their tiny apartment into a home.

Suga was still becoming acquainted with the pliant, unravelled person he became when Daichi took him to bed. It still made his face flame, sometimes. Reconciling his natural reserve with this private hunger was, he supposed, a function of becoming an adult.

He smiled softly to himself, body sore and stinging a little, from the rough handling he'd asked for, in gasps.

"Hah," he nodded, finding the instructions for the make and model of their oven, online.

His head flew up when he heard a knock at the door. Who could it be? Ah. Probably Noya-kun.

Suga padded into the hallway and opened the door.

Standing on his doorstep was a businessman, in grey suit and coat, perhaps thirty-five years of age.

 _Oh no,_ Suga immediately thought, _is something the matter at the office?_

The man bowed to him, several times, then stood there, smiling.

Remembering his manners, Suga bowed in return, one hand holding his robe closed as he did so.

The man bowed again. "Hello," he said finally.

"Good afternoon," Suga cocked his head. Behind him, Daichi had emerged from the bathroom, a bath towel secured around his waist.

"Aaah," breathed the man.

"My apologies," Suga said carefully, "are we acquainted?"

"No," said the man, "but I look forward to becoming so."

Suga frowned. "Umm...did the CPIJ not send you?"

The man's eyes drifted up and down Suga's body. "You are very cute," he purred appreciatively. " _Very_ cute."

"I think," Suga stammered, "t-that there has been some mistake. I'm sorry...good day." He bowed again and shut the door slowly, so as not to appear rude.

"Who was that?" Daichi asked.

"I have no idea," Suga turned. "He called me cute. I'm too old for that word."

"No," Daichi laughed, "No, you aren't! Come with me..."

__________

Suga had laughed when he saw the _onsen_ that Daichi had constructed in the orange bathroom. Daichi had taped pictures of mountains to the walls. He'd lit the tiny oil burner and the room smelled of jasmine. He'd lit candles, and his ipod played nature sounds; a softly gurgling river, summer rain.

Suga sank into the tub, sighing deliciously. Daichi lay at the other end, his feet on either side of Suga's shoulders.

"Close your eyes," Daichi was pleased that Suga was enjoying his surprise, "you will think you're in an _onsen_."

Suga's mouth curved into a fond smile. "This is too peaceful for an _onsen_ ," he chuckled. "every _onsen_ I have ever been to has also contained the entire team...Hinata-kun shouting and splashing, and Kageyama trying to drown him."

Daichi laughed.

"Also, we don't drink sake in the public bath." Suga reached an arm out, taking the tiny warmed cup and sipping it.

"Remember the time we lied to Asahi-kun and told him there was a water-snake in the _onsen_?" Daichi asked.

"That was mean," Suga said. "He was so upset! He's really frightened of snakes."

"Noya was angry. I started calling him _water-worm_ instead of _water-snake_ and he tried to strangle me."

Daichi watched Suga. Suga stretched one hand lazily, fingers outspread, bouncing them softly off of the orange tiles.

Suga opened his eyes just a fraction. "Dai?"

"Yes?"

"I'm so sorry. Can you turn off the recording? That water sound makes me want to pee every five minutes."

Daichi got out of the bath, dried his hands and fiddled with the ipod, putting on music.

Another knock was heard at their door. The pair exchanged a long look.

"Leave it," said Suga.

"What if it's that guy again?"

"Then I will handle it," Daichi jabbed a thumb in his chest. "And he won't come back."

Daichi shrugged into his robe, stepped outside of the bathroom and answered the door.

"Hey," the visitor smiled, and bowed.

Daichi returned the courtesy. The man on his doorstep sported blue hair, and several facial piercings. And he was young. Eighteen or nineteen, perhaps.

A student of his? Impossible. Daichi knew all of his students. 

"You've just moved in?" the blue-haired boy was smiling.

"Yes," Daichi replied slowly, trying to ascertain the nature of the visit. "And you are?"

"Toyoda," the youngster introduced himself, "You can call me Toy."

"Huh?" Daichi frowned.

"Big bear," Toy eyed him. "So nice..."

"Ah! You have mistaken me for someone else!" Daichi shut the door, and leaned against it.

"Who is it?"

"A stranger," Daichi made he way back into the bathroom.

"Maybe," Suga mused, "the visitors are looking for the previous occupant? Christmas is a visiting holiday, for some."

"I don't know," Daichi scratched his head. "He called me 'Bear'."

Suga squawked.

__________

Daichi admired his cannelloni. He and Suga had stuffed them carefully, and laid them into a ceramic dish.

Suga was on his phone, speaking to one of the electricians from his workplace. He ended the call and came into the kitchen.

"Okay," he said, "We need to ground the appliance. Ramura-san has explained to me how to do it. And then we can bake our dinner. And I am hungry."

Daichi stepped out of the kitchen, and Suga went to fetch his tools.

Just as he was finishing up with the connection, another knock was heard at the door.

"If that's a stranger," Suga said, "I think we should ask some questions."

"I will get it."

"No, no, I will!"

The two of them crowded into the hallway, flinging the apartment door open. They laughed in relief.

"Tanaka-kun!! Hello, old friend!"

Tanaka Ryu stood in the hallway, gaping at Daichi and Suga. He wore a loud shirt, snug black jeans and boots. He carried a rather expensive bottle of sake.

"Oh, sake!" Suga observed happily. "Thank you!"

"I..."

"Oops," Suga, who had had his fair share of sake already, giggled. "That was rude of me to assume that was a gift. You look very nice, you must be heading to a party, or out on a date? Can you come in for a few minutes?"

"Um...um...."

"A visit won't take long," Daichi offered.

Tanaka looked distressed. "No! So sorry...it is...it is great to see you both...but I think I've gotten my directions very, very mixed up. I was looking for someone else in these apartments..."

"Oh," Suga frowned.

Tanaka entered the apartment, removing his boots at the door.

He looked around the comfy space, spying the star glimmering happily in the window.

"Oh!"

"Tanaka-kun, are you feeling okay? Will you sit?"

"Sorry," Tanaka backed out of the room, "It's later than I thought, and I really must go. Sorry to interrupt you..."

"No trouble," Suga assured him, "We were just enjoying a hot bath together..."

"Okay! Okay!" Tanaka held up a hand in protest, struggling back into his boots and rushing out of the apartment.

"What on earth?" Suga mused.

"With Tanaka-kun, one is never quite sure." Daichi shrugged. "I'm sure we'll get the full story later."

"I worry about the fumes at the print shop where he works," Suga declared. "That place is not properly vented."

__________

Suga and Daichi giggled, picking up the knife and fork that Daichi had placed at each setting.

"You can't hold them both in one hand," Suga played with the cutlery, "You need to eat using both hands. It's less efficient."

Daichi cut off a piece of cannelloni. He chewed thoughtfully. "Try some," he urged.

Suga put a forkful into his mouth. "It's dense," he mused. "I thought it would be spicier."

"It's chewy."

"Is it supposed to be chewy?"

"I don't know."

"This would have been nice and filling after practice."

Daichi placed his utensils on his plate and looked at Suga carefully.

Suga swallowed. "What?"

"You know what."

Suga looked down. After a long moment, he spoke. "I feel like an idiot."

"If you're an idiot, then I'm an idiot, too."

Suga poured Daichi a sake.

"Children are the ones who indulge their passions...'I love dinosaurs' they proclaim, or, 'I love macaroons' or...'I love volleyball.' Do you remember what it was like, meeting Hinata-kun for the first time? Do you remember how intense and unrelenting he was, in his love for volleyball?"

Daichi nodded.

"I thought," Suga continued, "that maturity meant putting aside selfish things...turning one's energy and focus toward work...and family. And duty. For me to want more than I have, seems selfish. Incredibly selfish. I just...I confess I miss playing. I think about it every day."

He waited, eyes fixed on the table.

"Me too," Daichi concurred.

"You do?"

"I do. I thought that teaching physical education, mentoring students, would be a suitable substitute."

"I suppose I thought that investing myself in my career would do it," Suga agreed.

"We said that we'd find a League after University, but we never did. Then, one year turned into two..."

"I want to play again."

"So do I. So does Noya, I bet. And I think that Hinata-kun is lost without volleyball. Perhaps we should join an adult League, those of us that live in Tokyo, now."

Suga let out a long sigh. "Yes. Everyone needs an outlet."

"For us, it's a passion. It no longer matters that we never played overseas. Or that we were never selected for Junior Nationals. Or other higher-level play. That time and that possibility is gone. But the love, is not."

"No, it isn't."

Emboldened by sake, Suga ducked under one of Daichi's arms, seating himself in Daichi's lap.

"I'm so relieved," he kissed Daichi softly, tasting tomato. " _Bear._ "

"Don't make that a thing."

"Big bear..."

"Seriously, that's enough of that."

A loud pounding caused Suga to flinch. "What the hell?"

"That's an impolite knock," Daichi remarked.

"Sawamura-san!" A screech from the hallway, "Open this door!"

"Hai," Daichi called, "Noya! Coming..."

Daichi dumped Suga onto the cushion beside him, and rose. No sooner had he unlocked the door, when Nishinoya Yuu squished past him, and into the apartment.

"What did I tell you?" Noya chided, slapping his palm against his forehead. "I told you both to be careful! Suga-san!"

"Hi," Suga stood.

Noya placed his hands on his hips, glaring at the silver star twinkling in the window. "Who put that up? You?"

"I like it," Suga replied, "I like stars..."

"No," Suga dragged a stool over to the window. "No, no! Take it down!"

He scrambled up onto the stool, plucking the star from it's hook.

"I told you both," he wagged a finger, " _Ask me!_ If you don't know something about the neighbourhood, ask me! You can't put this up!"

Daichi frowned. "What do you mean? Ask you about a decoration? Why??"

"It's not just a decoration," Noya flopped into the couch, the star on his lap. "In these buildings...a star..." he flushed.

Suga looked at Daichi. Daichi shrugged.

"You don't understand," Noya rolled his eyes. "If you hang a star up in these buildings it's..."

"It's what?"

Noya pressed his lips together tightly. "It's an invitation....it means," he sputtered, "It means that you want to have..."

"What?" Suga prodded.

"It means you want to have sex! With a third person. A threesome, okay? It means you are open to a threesome!"

Daichi bit his lip. His shoulders shook as he erupted in laughter.

"Ohhh!" Suga's eyes grew huge.

Noya rose. "Here," he held the star out with both hands, "keep it away from the window, Suga-san. I do not have time for this right now. I can't keep an eye on you two every minute!"

Daichi wiped tears of mirth from his eyes. "Oh, Noya-kun...that explains..."

"I don't want to know! I'm going! See you tomorrow!"

Suga latched the door after Noya had left, still laughing.

"Daichi?" he asked grinning, "Do you actually think Tanaka-kun was looking for two other people...that weren't us?"

Daichi shook his head. "I have no idea. None at all..." He took a step toward Suga.

"Uh-oh," Suga's eyes widened, "Here comes the Bear..."

"Stop," Daichi growled, scooping up a kicking Suga. "behave!"

"Am I cute? I'm so cute!" Suga laughed.

"I will show you," Daichi strode across the apartment, dumping Suga onto the futon, "that you do not need two lovers to please you. I can do more than enough!"

He pinned his lover playfully, catching an ankle, his teeth nipping at the inside of Suga's thigh. He had no intention of answering the door again.


End file.
